Creating Plural Tones Patents (Class 347/15)
  • Patent number: 9849672
    Abstract: An example provides a fluid ejection apparatus including a first firing resistor and a second firing resistor to selectively cause fluid to be ejected through a single nozzle, and a parasitic resistor arranged to add a parasitic resistance to the first firing resistor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Ning Ge, Hang-Ru Goy, Boon Bing Ng, Shane O'Brien, Mun Hooi Yaow
  • Patent number: 9849671
    Abstract: A printer comprising a printhead comprising a number of non-staggered nozzles and a processor communicatively coupled to the printhead, in which the processor executes computer usable program code to adjust the firing time of a number of nozzles within a group of nozzles by a portion of a full dot row. A method comprising, with a processor, adjusting the firing time of a number of nozzles within a group of nozzles of a printhead by a portion of a full dot row by delaying the firing of a subset of those nozzles by a full dot row, in which the nozzles of the printhead are not staggered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventor: Matthew A. Shepherd
  • Patent number: 9849668
    Abstract: Provided are an image processing device, an image processing method, and an ink jet recording apparatus that can prevent the occurrence of density unevenness, such as banding, regardless of a duty, without causing deterioration of image quality. A jetting rate indicating an ink jetting rate of each of a plurality of nozzles which jet ink in a recording head including the nozzles is determined. A nozzle pattern indicating which of the plurality of nozzles of the recording head is used to record each pixel of an image on a recording medium is determined. The jetting rate of the nozzle which records each pixel is reflected in a gradation value of each pixel of the image on the basis of the determination result of the jetting rate and the determination result of the nozzle pattern to convert the gradation value of each pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Kimito Katsuyama
  • Patent number: 9845403
    Abstract: Provided is an ink image matter generating method for selecting a fluorescent ink by performing (a) a process of color-measuring a target color which is a target of color reproduction on a medium and the medium on which an inkjet color ink for color reproduction of the target color is printed; (b) a process of calculating a difference between a colorimetric value of the target color and a colorimetric value of the medium on which the color ink is printed; and (c) a process of selecting a fluorescent ink for reducing the difference between the colorimetric value of the target color and the colorimetric value of the medium on which the color ink is printed, from fluorescent inks that are set in advance, and jetting droplets of the selected fluorescent ink together with the color ink, or after the droplets of the color ink are jetted to cause the fluorescent ink to exist on a surface of an ink image matter, thereby making it possible to select and use an appropriate fluorescent ink with respect to a specific col
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2017
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Hiroki Watanabe, Tomohiro Mizuno, Hideyasu Ishibashi
  • Patent number: 9844960
    Abstract: The driving order of driving blocks is controlled so that ink landing positions from driving blocks differ from each other in multiple scans. Recording data is generated so that, of pixels where ink is discharged in one scan, the number of pixels adjacent at both sides in the scanning direction to pixels where ink is discharged in another scan is greater than the number of pixels not adjacent at both sides in the scanning direction to pixels where ink is discharged the other scan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hirokazu Tanaka, Gou Sasaki, Tsukasa Doi, Satoshi Seki, Fumiko Suzuki, Mayuko Yamagata, Kiichiro Takahashi
  • Patent number: 9844954
    Abstract: A document feeder for a printer may include an upper part and/or a lower part. The upper part may include a feeding roller arrangement configured to engage with an upper face of a document. The lower part may include a retaining surface. The lower part may further include a sliding element which, in at least an operation mode of the document feeder, may have a portion that projects with respect to the retaining surface for supporting a lower face of the document in such a way that at least a portion of the document is raised with respect to the retaining surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2017
    Assignee: SHENZHEN FU YING INNOVATION TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION LIMITED
    Inventors: Flavio Balasini, Paolo Poma
  • Patent number: 9832348
    Abstract: A recording data generation apparatus is provided that generates recording data in CMYK form including color information related to CMYK values and color information other than the CMYK values based on image data in RGB form including color information related to RGB values and transparency information related to transparency degree.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Takuya Ono, Tatsuo Akasaka
  • Patent number: 9815275
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus for printing an image on a print medium by using a printing unit that ejects a first ink in accordance with first quantized data and ejects a second ink in accordance with second quantized data, the image printing apparatus has a first quantization configured to quantize multi-valued data corresponding to the first ink to generate the first quantized data, the multi-valued data indicating intermediate density; and a second quantization unit configured to quantize multi-valued data corresponding to the second ink to generate the second quantized data, the multi-valued data indicating intermediate density. Surface tension of the first ink is larger than surface tension of the second ink, and a first dot pattern printed on the print medium in accordance with the first quantized data has higher dispersibility than a second dot pattern printed on the print medium in accordance with the second quantized data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yumi Yanai, Masao Kato
  • Patent number: 9796176
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first recording head including nozzles, each nozzle discharging liquid droplets, a second recording head including nozzles, each nozzle discharging liquid droplets, a detector to detect whether there is a non-discharging nozzle among the nozzles of the first recording head and the second recording head, the non-discharging nozzle being incapable of discharging the liquid droplets, and a controller to control at least one of the amount of the liquid droplet discharged from an adjacent nozzle to the non-discharging nozzle of the first recording head and the amount of the liquid droplet discharged from an adjacent nozzle to the non-discharging nozzle of the second recording head when the target landing position of the liquid droplet of the non-discharging nozzle of the first recording head is the same as the target landing position of the liquid droplet of the non-discharging nozzle of the second recording head.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventor: Taku Satoh
  • Patent number: 9789684
    Abstract: In a control device, a controller is configured to perform: determining whether to print a target unit image according to J number of index values respectively corresponding to J number of target partial images; in response to determining to print the target unit image, controlling a printer to execute ejection processing and movement processing for printing a band image constituted with H number of successive unit images arranged in a sub-scanning direction and including the target unit image, the ejection processing ejecting a droplet of coloring material onto a printing medium while moving a print head in a main scanning direction, the movement processing moving the printing medium in the sub-scanning direction with respect to the print head; and in response to determining not to print the target unit image, controlling the printer to execute the movement processing but not execute the ejection processing for printing the target unit image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shingo Saito, Masaki Kondo
  • Patent number: 9767356
    Abstract: A system including an interface for receiving inspection image data of an inspection image of an inspection object. The inspection image data includes information of an analyzed pixel of the inspected image and of reference pixels of the inspected image. The system further includes a memory and a processor device operatively coupled to the interface and the memory to obtain an inspected value representative of the analyzed pixel of the inspected image, and a reference value for each of the reference pixels of the inspected image. For each reference pixel, the processor devices calculates a difference between the reference value of a respective reference pixel and the inspected value of the analyzed pixel, computes a representative difference value based on the differences and determines a presence of a defect in the analyzed pixel based on the representative difference value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2017
    Assignee: Applied Materials Israel Ltd
    Inventors: Moshe Amzaleg, Yehuda Cohen, Nir Ben-David Dodzen, Efrat Rozenman
  • Patent number: 9738089
    Abstract: A liquid ejection apparatus corrects image data by: setting a to-be-corrected dot element; acquiring a correction amount based on an offset between a formation position at which a dot corresponding to the to-be-corrected dot element is to be formed on a recording medium while the recording medium is conveyed the reference conveyance amount per unit time and a formation position at which a dot corresponding to the to-be-corrected dot element is to be formed while the recording medium is conveyed a conveyance amount different from the reference conveyance amount per unit time; and executing correction on the to-be-corrected dot element. The correction is executed by setting a density value for the to-be-corrected dot element as that for corresponding one dot element whose data array order is shifted from a data array order of the to-be-corrected dot element by the number of dot elements corresponding to the correction amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Katsuaki Suzuki
  • Patent number: 9729760
    Abstract: The image forming apparatus including: a controller controlling the image forming unit to form a test image, controlling the measurement unit to measure the test image on the image bearing member, and controlling the transfer unit to transfer the test image to the sheet; a reception unit receiving a user instruction; a second generation unit generating the conversion condition based on the user instruction and the measurement result of the test image, wherein the sample image includes a first sample image, a second sample image, and a third sample image, a color difference between the first and second sample images is smaller than a threshold value, a color difference between the second and third sample images is larger than the threshold value, density of the first sample image is higher than density of the second sample image and density of the third sample image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hayato Negishi, Takahiro Nakase
  • Patent number: 9718278
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprising: a color ink applying unit configured to apply color ink to a print medium; a clear ink applying unit configured to apply a plurality of clear inks to the print medium to cover the applied color ink, each clear ink of the plurality of clear inks having a degree of glossiness that is different from each other; and a determining unit configured to determine an amount ratio of each clear ink to each other clear ink of the plurality of clear inks in accordance with the degree of glossiness indicated by the glossiness data and to determine an amount of each clear ink of the plurality of clear inks such that the determined ratio is satisfied and such that the clear inks cover the applied color ink and print medium at approximately 100% area coverage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akira Morita, Keiichirou Takeuchi, Eisuke Nishitani, Takumi Otani, Fumihiro Goto, Koichiro Nakazawa
  • Patent number: 9701136
    Abstract: A method for printing to a recording medium having at least one ink or at least one liquid toner whose liquid component includes a plurality of fluids, wherein after the printing, the method includes heat treating the recording medium in a range from 40 to 80° C.; and fixing the recording medium at a temperature of at least 90° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Océ Printing Systems GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventor: Michael Pohlt
  • Patent number: 9692944
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus, an image processing method, an inkjet printing apparatus and a data generating apparatus are provided that can reduce, when a plurality of types of inks are used to print an image, the color unevenness that is caused by the variation of ejecting characteristics among a plurality of nozzles. A conversion table for correcting, based on an ejecting characteristic, a multi dimensional color printed by ejecting at least two types of inks on a common region on a printing medium is used to correct a plurality of color signals corresponding to these inks.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Fumitaka Goto, Akitoshi Yamada, Tomokazu Ishikawa, Tohru Ikeda, Nobutaka Miyake, Makoto Torigoe
  • Patent number: 9676181
    Abstract: A method for stabilizing a refilling speed within a predetermined range even with various physical properties of liquid to be ejected is provided for a liquid ejection head using a thermal system. To achieve this, a drive pulse is controlled for each nozzle array according to the combination of a predetermined material and structure of a bubble-generating chamber and the physical property of the liquid to be ejected such that an amount of an overshoot and the refilling speed are within a predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Keiji Tomizawa, Takuma Kodoi, Chiaki Muraoka
  • Patent number: 9680084
    Abstract: A piezoelectric element driving apparatus may apply a predetermined driving signal to a piezoelectric element to drive the piezoelectric element. The driving signal may be an asymmetrical waveform in which amplitudes of first and second polarities thereof are different from each other. An exemplary embodiment in the present disclosure may provide a piezoelectric element driving apparatus and method having a high output while protecting dielectric characteristics of a piezoelectric element by driving the piezoelectric element using an asymmetrical driving signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: MPLUS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Joo Yul Ko, Jung Wook Seo, Ho kwon Yoon, Hong Yeon Cho, Boum Seock Kim, Kang Heon Hur
  • Patent number: 9669629
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment, an ink-jet head is provided which comprises a substrate; a piezoelectric body configured to have a plurality of parallel partition walls at the same pitch interval in the nozzle arrangement direction on the substrate and be plurally arranged in a direction orthogonal to the nozzle arrangement direction; a frame body configured to be arranged on the substrate at the outside of the piezoelectric body; and a nozzle plate configured to have a plurality of discharge openings which is formed by shifting by a half pitch in the nozzle arrangement direction in each row of pressure chambers formed with plural rows by the frame body and a plurality of the partition walls and is respectively formed in the orthogonal direction at a pitch identical to the pitch in each the pressure chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2017
    Assignees: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA, TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Isao Suzuki
  • Patent number: 9656051
    Abstract: Devices having selectively permeable barriers are provided with a substrate, a first layer overlaying at least a portion of the substrate, and a second layer overlaying at least a portion of the first layer. The first layer has at least one first pore and the second layer has at least one second pore. At least a portion of the first and/or second layers are movable with respect to each other between an open condition and a closed condition in response to a change in an environmental factor. In the open condition, the first and second pores are substantially aligned to allow fluid communication between the substrate and the outside environment. In the closed condition, the first and second pores are substantially misaligned to prevent fluid communication between the substrate and the outside environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: AVERY DENNISON RETAIL INFORMATION SERVICES, LLC
    Inventor: Ian J. Forster
  • Patent number: 9656466
    Abstract: In some examples, a printing system includes a printhead comprising a nozzle array including plural columns of nozzles to deliver printing fluid to a print medium, wherein nozzles in a first column of the columns are offset from nozzles in a second column of the columns. A controller is to cause introduction of a grain pattern into an image printed using the printhead onto the print medium by, for each respective pass of a plurality of passes of the printhead over the print medium, controlling an advance of the print medium by an uneven advance step for a print mask pattern that controls firing of the nozzles of the printhead, where the advance of the print medium by the uneven advance step causes an irregular pattern of firing of the nozzles of the printhead in successive passes of the plurality of passes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Andreas Muller, Utpal Kumar Sarkar
  • Patent number: 9623655
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a liquid discharge head that includes a discharge-port-forming member, which has discharge ports through which a liquid is discharged, and a pressure-chamber-forming member, which includes pressure chambers communicating with the discharge ports and each including a heating resistor formed in a bottom portion thereof and which has a surface joined to the discharge-port-forming member, includes preparing the pressure-chamber-forming member in which wiring layers each including a barrier metal as a base member are formed, forming the pressure chambers, whose depths from the surface are different from each other and which include the heating resistors each formed of one of the barrier metals, by recessing the pressure-chamber-forming member from the surface and removing at least two of the wiring layers, which are formed at different positions in a depth direction from the surface, to expose the corresponding barrier metals, and forming the discharge-port-forming member on the surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masaya Uyama, Makoto Sakurai, Makoto Terui
  • Patent number: 9620082
    Abstract: An example involves identifying a first artifact in an image on a display, the first artifact caused by a first subpixel of a first pixel, determining a type of the first artifact based on a location of the first artifact relative to content of the image, and correcting the first artifact to remove the appearance of the first artifact from the display based on the type of the first artifact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Eli Saber, Marvin D. Nelson, Michael A. Stauffer, David G. Bohan, Rakshit Sunil Kothari
  • Patent number: 9604452
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus including a controller for controlling a print execution unit. The print execution unit repeatedly performs ejection processing of ejection droplet of color material onto a printing medium. The controller is configured to perform: specifying an estimate value for a target pixel image by using at least one pixel value corresponding to at least one of a plurality of pixels included in target partial data representing the target partial image, the target partial image being selected among a plurality of partial images included in an N-th band image and representing a part of an object; specifying an object type of the object; and determining an ejection execution direction with respect to an N-th ejection processing to be one of a first direction and a second direction according to the estimate value and the object type.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Shota Morikawa
  • Patent number: 9592689
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus for printing an image on a print medium by using a printing unit that ejects a first ink in accordance with first quantized data and ejects a second ink in accordance with second quantized data, the image printing apparatus has a first quantization configured to quantize multi-valued data corresponding to the first ink to generate the first quantized data, the multi-valued data indicating intermediate density; and a second quantization unit configured to quantize multi-valued data corresponding to the second ink to generate the second quantized data, the multi-valued data indicating intermediate density. Surface tension of the first ink is larger than surface tension of the second ink, and a first dot pattern printed on the print medium in accordance with the first quantized data has higher dispersibility than a second dot pattern printed on the print medium in accordance with the second quantized data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yumi Yanai, Masao Kato
  • Patent number: 9591185
    Abstract: A printer and a method of processing an image (1) to be printed with a printer which has a printing unit arranged to produce a printout from image-representing print data of the image, and a processing unit for processing image-representing input data of the image so as to generate the image-representing print data. The processing unit is arranged for separating the image into a line detail sub-image (20) containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image (25) containing area details, performing a first printing mode processing pipeline on the line detail sub-image and performing a second, different printing mode processing pipeline on the area detail sub-image, and generating multi-layer print mask data, wherein at least one print mask data layer is usable to print the line detail sub-image in at least one line detail print pass, and the remaining, i.e.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Sergio Puigardeu Aramendia, Angel Martinez Barambio, Luis Garcia Garcia, M. Isabel Borrel Bayona
  • Patent number: 9579884
    Abstract: An image formation apparatus configured to form a monochrome image by discharging ink droplets on the basis of recording data from a plurality of nozzles having black nozzles for discharging black ink droplets and color nozzles for discharging color ink droplets that produce composite black, the image formation apparatus comprising a control unit configured to form the monochrome image by discharging the black ink droplets from the black nozzles and discharging the color ink droplets that produce composite black from the color nozzles when recording density of black ink represented by the recording data is a predetermined density or higher.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Matsumura, Hirotaka Matsunaga
  • Patent number: 9561679
    Abstract: A printer including a first liquid discharger, a second liquid discharger, a curing unit, and a controller is provided. The first and second liquid dischargers discharge active-energy-ray-curable colored and transparent liquids, respectively. The curing unit emits an active energy ray. The controller causes the first liquid discharger to scan multiple times and discharge the colored liquid on a medium, causes the curing unit to cure the colored liquid on the medium after each scan of the first liquid discharger to print a colored image with the colored liquid on the medium, causes the second liquid discharger to discharge the transparent liquid on the colored image, causes the curing unit to cure the transparent liquid on the colored image to form a transparent layer on the colored image, and controls a thickness of the transparent layer in accordance with the number of scan of the first liquid discharger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2017
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Daisuke Mezaki
  • Patent number: 9550357
    Abstract: An image processor of a printing apparatus including a first printing head having recording units spaced at a given interval orthogonal to a transportation direction of a print medium and spaced along the transportation direction of the print medium, a second printing head disposed downstream of the first printing head, a device for obtaining recording positions of first and second images printed with the first and second printing heads, a device for calculating a positional shift amount between the recording positions of the first and second images, and a positional shift interpolating image converter performing weighting, if a remainder is generated through division of the positional shift amount by the given interval, to the first or second image depending on the remainder to convert the first or second image into a positional shift interpolating image having been shifted in accordance with skew of the print medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2017
    Assignees: SCREEN Holdings Co., Ltd., RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Katsuyuki Hisaoka, Kazuki Fukui, Kunio Muraji
  • Patent number: 9544471
    Abstract: A print control apparatus is configured to control a print head adapted to discharge ink droplets of a plurality of sizes to execute printing. The print control apparatus includes a print control unit configured to acquire a gradation value of an ink color based on image data and to determine whether or not to discharge an ink droplet of one of the plurality of sizes based on the gradation value. The print control unit is configured to determine that the ink droplet to be discharged is the ink droplet of a first size or smaller when the gradation value belongs to a maximum value-side partial range including a maximum value, and to determine that the ink droplet to be discharged is only the ink droplet of the first size when the gradation value belongs to a range towards a minimum value-side than the partial range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2017
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuya Matsumura, Naoki Sudo
  • Patent number: 9517620
    Abstract: A printing device is provided and includes: a head unit and a controller. The head unit performs a main scan operation corresponding to each of a predetermined N-number of printing passes (N is an integer of three or greater) on a same area of a medium in a multi-pass mode, and the controller sets a density of printing to be performed in a k-number of last printing passes (k is an integer which is equal to or greater than 1 and is less than N), so as to be lower than a density of printing to be performed in the (N?k)-th printing pass, and sets a density of printing to be performed by a plurality of individual nozzles of the nozzle row of the head unit for ejecting ink drops in the (N?k+1)-th printing pass, so as to gradually decrease toward a head rear end side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2016
    Assignee: MIMAKI ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Masakazu Okajima, Eiichi Ohara, Junki Kasahara
  • Patent number: 9519848
    Abstract: A calibration target is disclosed. The calibration target is created such that a color patch is sensitive to drop weight changes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2016
    Assignee: HEWLETT PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.
    Inventors: Peter Morovic, Jan Morovic, Montserrat Solano Pallarol, Marti Rius Rossell, Juan Manuel Garcia Reyero Vinas
  • Patent number: 9517634
    Abstract: A printing control apparatus is configured to use a recording head where a plurality of nozzles are arranged in a row formation with a predetermined pitch, and configured to perform interlace printing such that a resolution is equal to or more than a resolution that is based on the pitch when printing is performed due to ink droplets being discharged from each of the nozzles. The printing control apparatus includes a dischargeable amount acquiring section configured to determine a dischargeable amount per unit of time according to a remaining amount of ink in an ink cartridge, and a split printing control section configured to split a predetermined region in one band an odd number of times according to the dischargeable amount per unit of time, and configured to carry out interlace printing in each of split regions on an outward path and a return path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Takashi Kobayashi, Naoki Sudo
  • Patent number: 9516192
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprising: a resolution conversion unit configured to convert the resolution of a pixel provided by input image data; a gradation conversion unit configured to perform matrix conversion onto the pixel; and a writing unit configured to perform a write operation, wherein, in the normal mode, the gradation conversion unit performs matrix conversion onto the pixel with reference to the gradation conversion table for the normal mode, and the writing unit performs the write operation of the pixel in a normal order that is the order image data being input into the image forming apparatus, and in the reverse mode, the gradation conversion unit performs matrix conversion onto the pixel with reference to the gradation conversion table for the reverse mode, and the writing unit performs the write operation of the pixel in a reverse order opposite to the normal order.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2016
    Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventors: Masayuki Hayashi, Yoshinori Shirasaki, Tatsuya Miyadera, Motohiro Kawanabe, Hiroaki Ikeda, Akinori Yamaguchi, Tomohiro Ohshima
  • Patent number: 9503609
    Abstract: Data is generated which can prevent content displayed on a screen from being accurately replicated. A data-generating device has: an acquiring means that acquires still image data; a still image data generating means that generates a predetermined number of items of still image data in which at least part of pixel values of the acquired still image data are changed, and that makes an average of pixel values of matching display positions between the predetermined number of items of still image data equal to pixel values of matching display positions in the acquired still image data; and a movie data generating means that generates movie data for which each of the generated still image data is displayed at a predetermined frame rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2016
    Assignee: Rakuten, Inc.
    Inventors: Takamasa Takenaka, Shinya Takami
  • Patent number: 9495621
    Abstract: A method for calibrating a printer is disclosed. The method includes receiving data corresponding to a Reference curve for the printer, receiving data corresponding to a Measurement curve representing a current response for the printer and generating a Target curve that follows the Reference curve and transitions to the Measured curve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Vincent William Ferreri, Walter F. Kailey
  • Patent number: 9493000
    Abstract: A liquid ejecting device includes: a piezoelectric element that is deformed by applying at least one drive waveform among a plurality of drive waveforms to the piezoelectric element, the plurality of drive waveforms including a first drive waveform and a second drive waveform; a cavity that is filled with a liquid and is increased or decreased in internal pressure due to deformation of the piezoelectric element; a nozzle that communicates with the cavity, and ejects the liquid as a liquid droplet; and a selection section that selects at least one drive waveform from the plurality of drive waveforms, the liquid droplet including a first liquid droplet ejected when the first drive waveform has been selected, and a second liquid droplet ejected when the second drive waveform has been selected, an ejection volume of the first liquid droplet being almost equal to an ejection volume of the second liquid droplet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignees: Seiko Epson Corporation, SCREEN Holdings Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Yamagata, Toshiki Usui, Naoki Yonekubo, Kiyoomi Mitsuki
  • Patent number: 9487039
    Abstract: Certain examples of printers and methods of printing may involve determining colorant amounts of image regions within a print image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2016
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, LP.
    Inventors: Marc Rossinyol Casals, Jacint Humet Pous, Maria Elizabeth Zapata, Jaime Fernández del Rio
  • Patent number: 9481188
    Abstract: A liquid droplet ejecting apparatus executes multi-pass recording constituted of N scan passes including a scan pass for an outward path and a scan pass for a return path (N being an integer of 2 or more). When a proportion of executions of dot recording using a first liquid in each scan pass is made a first recording ratio, and a proportion of executions of dot recording using a second liquid in each pass is made a second recording ratio, the first recording ratio and the second recording ratio are set such that, in a first half of the N scan passes, a total ratio of the first recording ratio is larger than a total ratio of the second recording ratio, and in a second half of the N scan passes, a total ratio of the second recording ratio is larger than a total ratio of the first recording ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Yoichi Kujiraoka
  • Patent number: 9475286
    Abstract: A method of cross-talk suppression and a system therein are disclosed. The method may include receiving a print pulse to simultaneously fire ink from an array of adjacent nozzles of an inkjet printhead; and actuating groups of three or more adjacent nozzles of said array of nozzles with a time delay between actuations of said three or more nozzles of the groups.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: HEWLETT-PACKARD INDUSTRIAL PRINTING LTD
    Inventors: Ron Tuttnauer, Dan Bavli, Etgar Marcus, Mark Ripenbein
  • Patent number: 9473675
    Abstract: A color conversion processing apparatus acquires spot color information, which is capable of defining a spot color with device-dependent color values. The color conversion processing apparatus further acquires a reference profile and an updated profile, and using the spot color information, converts an image signal of a spot color plate into a first image signal of a process color plate. Then, by having the reference profile and the updated profile act successively thereon, the color conversion processing apparatus converts the first image signal into a second image signal of a process color plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroshi Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 9463637
    Abstract: An image forming device, includes: a conveying device that is capable of changing a conveyance speed of a recording medium; a plurality of liquid droplet ejecting devices which is arranged in the order along a conveyance direction of the recording medium which is conveyed by the conveying device; and a control unit which changes a concentration of a liquid droplet per unit area which is ejected from the liquid droplet ejecting device to be landed on the recording medium, in accordance with the conveyance speed, when a multi-color image is formed using liquid droplets of different colors which are ejected from two or more of the plurality of liquid droplet ejecting devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Takeshi Matsunaga
  • Patent number: 9462159
    Abstract: A image processing device includes a nozzle ejection rate determination unit that determines a first nozzle ejection rate for each nozzle, a nozzle pattern determination unit that determines a nozzle pattern indicating by which of the plurality of nozzles individual pixels are to be recorded, a conversion unit that converts gradation values reflecting the first nozzle ejection rate on the gradation values of the individual pixels, and a halftone processing unit that performs halftone processing to an image converted by the conversion unit. The halftone processing unit performs the halftone processing using a second dither mask generated by threshold conversion reflecting a second nozzle ejection rate on a threshold of a first dither mask.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2016
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Kimito Katsuyama
  • Patent number: 9440436
    Abstract: An apparatus for generating data used to apply a plurality of inks similar in color and different in color material density, including a first ink and a second ink higher in color material density than the first ink, onto a pixel area on a recording medium with a recording head includes a generation unit configured to generate the data in such a way that out of a plurality of pixels constituting the pixel area, a number of pixels onto which dots of the first ink are applied in an overlapped manner is greater than a number of pixels onto which dots of the second ink are applied in the overlapped manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryota Kato, Yoshitomo Marumoto
  • Patent number: 9434188
    Abstract: A liquid discharging apparatus includes a feeding unit that feeds a medium, a feeding driving unit that drives the feeding unit, a liquid discharging unit that performs a discharging operation of discharging a liquid to the medium, and a controller that controls the feeding driving unit to start to operate in synchronization with a timing when the liquid discharging unit finally discharges the liquid in the discharging operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Jun Ushiama
  • Patent number: 9427963
    Abstract: A method of calibrating a printhead, for printing two-dimensional bit-mapped images having a number of pixels per row, is disclosed for printheads (1) having a row of printing channels (5). During printing, in order to cause volumes of charged particulate concentrations of one of a number of predetermined volume sizes to be ejected from selected ejection channels of the printhead to form printed pixels, control pulse values of respective predetermined amplitude and duration, as determined by respective image pixel bit values, are applied to the selected printing channels. The calibration method comprises providing an image (50) that causes each channel of the printhead to be driven with the same pulse value, and printing one or more test prints of the image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: Tonejet Limited
    Inventors: Andrew Clippingdale, Robin Timothy Bacon, Ewan Hendrik Conradie, Ammar Lecheheb, John Lawton Sharp, Jesse David Woolaston
  • Patent number: 9432616
    Abstract: Methods, systems, devices, and implementing technologies for up-scaling an original source video from a lower, first resolution to a desired output video having a higher, second resolution, using fractal zooming techniques to replace individual source pixels in each respective image frame of the original source video with a plurality of proposed replacement pixels in the vertical and horizontal dimensions having similar characteristics as the individual source pixel, reducing noise associated with each respective frame of the desired output video, re-sizing, as necessary, each respective replacement frame to the second resolution, and outputting each zoomed replacement frame to generate the desired output video, which is an up-scaled version of the original source video. The quality of the up-scaled output video is improved by using artifact filtering and linear smoothing techniques after the initial search and replace steps of the fractal zooming process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: DIMENSION, INC.
    Inventors: Lyman P. Hurd, John H. Elton, Carlos M. Diaz-Perez
  • Patent number: 9409388
    Abstract: An apparatus and a method of recording in which an ink ejection failure due to an excessive rise in the temperature of ejection ports is prevented while preventing a decrease in throughput. If ink can run out and the amount of ink ejected to one unit area is large, recording on the unit area is performed with an increased number of scans.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2016
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tetsuya Edamura, Masashi Hayashi, Kazunori Yamauchi, Tsukasa Doi, Daisuke Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 9369651
    Abstract: The invention provides an imager readout architecture utilizing analog-to-digital converters (ADC), the architecture comprising a band-limited sigma delta modulator (SDM) ADC; and a serpentine readout, which can be configured to allow the band-limited SDM to multiplex between multiple columns by avoiding discontinuities at the edges of a row. SDM ADC image reconstruction artifacts are minimized using a modified serpentine read out methodology, the methodology comprising using primary and redundant slices with the serpentine read out in opposite directions and averaging the slices. Advantageously, the invention can be used to develop a read out integrated circuit (ROIC) for strained layer superlattice imagers (SLS) using sigma delta modulator (SDM) based analog to digital converters (SDM ADC).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2016
    Assignee: Intrinsix Corporation
    Inventor: Eugene M. Petilli
  • Patent number: 9365033
    Abstract: A method is provided for controlling the ejection of ink drops from an inkjet printhead. The printhead comprises an array of ink chambers with nozzles arranged for applying a row of ink dots on a receiving medium using a control signal. The method comprises the steps of labeling a nozzle as a functioning nozzle if the nozzle, upon activation by a control signal, ejects an ink drop within predefined specifications, otherwise labeling the nozzle as a failing nozzle, and distributing a control signal associated with a failing nozzle to a neighboring nozzle to maintain a local optical density, wherein said control signal associated with a failing nozzle is not distributed to a neighboring nozzle, if a neighboring nozzle of said failing nozzle is also labeled as a failing nozzle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2016
    Assignee: OCE-TECHNOLOGIES B.V.
    Inventors: Koen J. Klein Koerkamp, Franciscus J. M. Van Galen, Albert G. M. Van Welie